5 Things We Want in the Next Star Trek Movie

More George Takei and sexy aliens

There's nothing new under any sun in the universe when it comes to Star Trek. In 2016, the legendary series will be 50 years old — a gargantuan milestone, when you consider its staying power and evolution. But that adaptive capability means that it's time for another change of direction, and hopefully the plotted course is rewarding.

And it sounds like that will be the case. Reports say that the script for Kirk and Spock's next adventure has been completed, but despite a few rumors that say it's likely heading into deep space and away from earth-saving missions, there are a lot of unknowns about the third installment of Star Trek.

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There are a lot of open ends now, too. When last we left the crew of the Enterprise, they'd (spoilers, by the way) vanquished the bad guy (sort of), saved the world (well, San Francisco), and (mostly) stopped a massive ship from destroying the Enterprise itself. Sound familiar? It's not that far off from the plot structure of the first Star Trek movie in the J.J. Abrams reboot.

Some fans complained that they'd hoped for a little more frontier, and a little less homeland security. Abrams has a habit of giving people what they want. The people wanted Kahn, so he gave it to them.

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Well now they want deep space, they want exploration, and they want strange(r) new worlds.

Writer/director Roberto Orci is perfect for the change of heading. He has an exhaustive resume when it comes to sci-fi flicks. Spider-Man, Transformers, Alias, Mission: Impossible, and the previous two Star Trek films. He cut his teeth with Xena and Hercules back in the late '90s.

He's also an arrogant, purist fanboy, at least according to some reports from fan sites and cast members, all of which is good for the films in the long run. As long as he's willing to do a better job of listening. With that in mind, here's what we want to see in a new Star Trek movie:

1. Strange New Worlds

This is kind of an obvious point (and part of the series' credo), but in truth there have been very few moments on alien surfaces. Those planets and species that have appeared tended to pop up chasing Kirk because he's different/delicious. If you're going to play to the fan base, bring in more advanced alien species, and give them some dialogue. The Romulans were a great touch, but let's throw the makeup department some extra cash and expand beyond a handful each of Romulans, Vulcans, and Klingons next time.

2. All-Out, Massive-Scale War

One small ship, one big ship has worked for most of the star fights in previous films. Let's really put the CGI to work, though, and have two armadas pound the crap out of each other, the way Return of the Jedi ended. Bigger works, especially if it's done with confidence and (most important) not in place of content. We don't want Michael Bay stuff here, just your average epic brawl.

3. Klingons

They had about ten minutes of screen time total in the last film, and appeared as the faceless threat in the 2009 film. It's an obvious plot choice: The Enterprise happens upon an exploratory armada in its deep-space travels — giving Kirk his chance to take the Kobayashi Maru test for real. Maybe they're pursued, maybe they're forced to work together against some greater threat (of which there are many in the Star Trek universe). Either way, seeding Mr. Worf's parents would be a nice nod to fans — and a chance to give Michael Dorn some work.

4. More Sexy Alien Ladies

And some muscular alien species, too, for equality purpose. But for the sake of character development, there should be more cohabitation among the Enterprise crew. Into Darkness lacked emotional connections, and the one obvious romantic flare was strained and tense. A little more sex for our young, sexy captain, and perhaps a girlfriend for Mr. Scott would be nice, people.

5. A George Takei Cameo

Active in both the Trekkie and LGBT communities, the original Sulu actor did exactly what any iconic one-role star should: wait several decades and then reappear as a witty, charming Internet presence. We'd love to see him appear the way Nemoy did in the previous two films, and it sounds like he's all for it himself.

And what we don't want to see:

1. Tribbles. One was enough, and the original television series often fell flat during the now-cliche plot lines in which something invaded the ship, tried to take over the mind of the captain, or threatened the chain of command. Abrams beat that plot device to death with ship politics. Which reminds me...

2. Convoluted Starfleet politics. Stop using demotion as a plot device already. Kirk can be the captain and it won't ruin the movie.

3. Hopped-up environmentalist plots involving whales. The Voyage Home was comically awful and everyone is bored with Whale Wars, so that's sort of moot at this point.